WORK OF WOMEN

Wairarapa Times-Age, 28 July 1942, Page 3

WORK OF WOMEN

IN NEW ZEALAND’S WAR 1 EFFORT PRAISEiD BY MR. NASH. QUESTIONS OF PACIFIC STRATEGY. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 10 a.m.) RUGBY, July 27. Praise for the way in which New Zealand women had helped to keep up production in the Dominion, while the men were in the Services, was expressed by Mr Walter Nash in London today. Mr Nash explained that all men between the ages of 18 and 66 were liable for some form of service and said that in spite of this production had gone up during the last twelve months, largely owing to the fine work of women who had returned to industry. Discussing the Pacific War Council Mr Nash said it did not in the main discuss the operational aspect of the war with Japan, but every factor involving questions of military strength and strategy was discussed. He was satisfied that the work of the council had been helpful to a very great degree, particularly to New Zealand and Australia. The Americans had done a splendid job by their victories in the Coral Sea and Midway Island battles, but the danger to New Zealand and Australia remained, because of Japan’s great naval strength. He expected that there would yet be hard conflicts in the Southern Pacific. It would be a great mistake for the Pacific Council to take the view that the wisest course would be to do nothing against Japan for the present 1 . They had to find the means of hitting the enemy wherever it was fnost harmful to hit him, not thinking of their own safety or that of any particular country, whether it were New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii the United States, or the United Kingdom.